Slowly, Slowly
by coolbyrne
Summary: "...nothing symbolizes how slow this relationship's been building better than a tortoise." Follow-up to "A Fine Proposal".


TITLE: Slowly, Slowly

AUTHOR: coolbyrne

RATING: T

SUMMARY: "...nothing symbolizes how slow this relationship's been building better than a tortoise." Follow-up to "A Fine Proposal".

A/N: I very, very rarely do a follow-up or "sequel" to my one-shots, because I feel they are as the name implies: a one shot. But I have to admit the first story ("A Fine Proposal") basically demanded a second part. So here it is. Thanks to happycamper5 for keeping things in order and excusing the lapse in my creative integrity.

...

"Okay Bass," she said as she tied the ribbon around him. "I've looked it up - the ribbon's not gonna hurt you, so we're good." She tentatively patted his hard shell, having no idea if he felt it or not. "It's all on you, but no pressure. You've got all night." Jane stood and rubbed her palms down the front of her jeans. "Okay," she repeated, more for her than the tortoise. Looking down, she added, "There's a gigantic bowl of those strawberries you like if you pull this off, buddy."

...

The promised prize remained unclaimed three hours later, and what started as a nervous twitch blossomed into a full-blown knee bounce.

Maura glanced over to the dark-haired woman beside her on the couch. "Is everything okay?"

"Hmmm? Yeah, everything's fine." She rubbed Maura's knee as if to emphasize the point.

An eyebrow raised. "So you're okay with the fact the Red Sox just gave up a 4 point lead in the bottom of the eighth inning?"

"What?" Jane's focus went to the big screen TV. "Shit!"

"So let me ask again - is everything okay?"

She sighed. "Besides the Red Sox? Yeah, it's fine." The tilt of Maura's head forced her to put a smile on her face. "Really, I'm fine. I've just got a lot on my mind."

"The McKinnon case."

"Yeah," she replied, happy for once to use work as an excuse.

"The ballistics report will be in tomorrow afternoon, so that should help."

"Yeah." She rubbed Maura's knee again. "I'm gonna use the bathroom, then I'm gonna head out. Me and Frost have to do follow-ups on the door-to-doors in the morning."

"Frost and I," she automatically corrected.

Jane smirked and stood. "You and Frost nothing. You'll be too busy doing the autopsy."

"Very funny. You know, you could always stay."

She knew. Hell, she probably spent more time at Maura's than she did at her own place. Jo Friday stayed so often, Maura bought her a little dog house for Christmas. But Bass' inability to hold up his end of the bargain had thrown a monkey wrench into the whole plan, and now she wasn't sure what she should do. _Find that damn turtle_, her heart told her. _Tortoise, _her brain corrected.

"I know, but...," she said aloud and thumbed towards the back of the house. "Let me just use the bathroom and I'll be right back."

"Okay," Maura replied, clearly still puzzled.

Jane walked down the short hall to the bathroom, then quickly slipped into the laundry room, Bass' usual place of choice, and the room where they had made their pact. It wasn't a large room, so it didn't take long to check the obvious spots. "Bass!" she whispered sharply. _Oh my God, I'm calling for a tu-tortoise_, she thought, though the ridiculousness of it didn't stop her from trying again. "Bass!" _Dammit!_ She bit her thumbnail and plotted her next move. Check the guest room then the bathroom. _If I can't find him, then... what? Stay the night and spend the entire time looking for the little shit_? Or go home and tell Maura she'd swing by early and pick her up? _Yeah_, she thought, _I could do that. Maura goes to bed when I leave, so chances of her running into Bass are super low. I'll just get here at the ass crack of dawn. I've got the key and he should be easier to find in the daylight. _But first, the guest room.

Though this room was bigger, there were only so many hiding places, and she was in the process of checking the last one when she heard a voice behind her.

"Jane?"

She lifted her head from under the bed and rolled back onto her heels. "Hey."

Clearly that wasn't quite the response the woman was looking for, because she tried a different question. "Did you lose something?"

_Yeah, a big animal I'm going to turn into a footstool. _Out loud, she replied "Yes." Maura patiently waited for more detail. "I, uh, I think I might have lost an-" _Don't say 'earring' when you don't wear them. _"Coin."

"An coin?" Maura repeated with a smile.

"What? Oh. No, I meant A coin. Obviously."

"Obviously."

"It's just... Pop gave it to me when I was little." _Nice save, Rizzoli_.

"Oh," Maura said with a frown. "When do you think you lost it?"

_I lost it the minute I started calling out for your pet. _"I'm not sure. Don't even know that I lost it here, but the process of elimination and all that."

"This would be the most obvious place, yes. What does it look like?"

Jane curled her index finger into her thumb. "It's about this big. Flat."

Maura laughed. "Sorry, I should have been more clear - what kind of coin is it?"

"Oh, uh, it's a quarter. With the year I was born on it." If she was going to lie, she knew enough to be specific, or she'd end up with any loose change the medical examiner found between now and tomorrow morning. She looked around the room. At this point, it seemed more likely she'd find an imaginary coin than a big freakin' turtle. _Tortoise_. "Did you know Cary Grant carried around a piece of string from his childhood in his pocket? He said it reminded him where he came from. Ma's a big Cary Grant fan. And I'm gonna go."

Startled by the Googlespeak coming from Jane, Maura simply nodded. "Let me walk you out."

Though Jane's eyes scanned every nook and cranny as they made their way to the door, her efforts were in vain. Bass was nowhere to be found. She jumped when Maura touched her arm.

"Are you sure you're okay, Jane?"

The concern on Maura's face melted her heart. "I'm fine, really. I'm sorry I've been all weird tonight." She gently pulled the blonde into an embrace that both held longer than necessary. "Okay?" she asked, stepping back.

"As long as you are."

In a move that surprised them both, Jane leaned forward and softly kissed Maura on the corner of her mouth. "I'll see you tomorrow."

...

And by 'tomorrow', she meant at 7AM, though they'd never had reason to get to work earlier than 8:30, and she definitely didn't have a reason to show up on Maura's doorstep at that hour. Her heart sank immediately when she pulled up to the drive - the Prius was already gone. _Where the hell could she be this early? _Jane's brow furrowed, slowly changing from concern to realization. They had spoken about the case last night, and Maura thought she was upset about the lack of evidence. The autopsy. _Of course_, Jane realized, _she went in early to get the autopsy done before I got in. She did it to try and give me some good news. _Jane rested her head on the steering wheel. The silver lining was, it offered Jane a chance to take a walk through the house unabated. She figured Maura hadn't found Bass or there would have been a barrage of text messages. It was up to her to find the damn thing and rethink her strategy.

The spare key slid easily into the lock and she turned off the security alarm before taking a long, deep sigh. "Maura?" she called out, just in case, but as expected, the house was silent. "Bass!" she yelled. "Where are you, you little shit?" A low thumping sound came from down the hall to the laundry room and he looked like he was genuinely intending to greet her at the door. "Are you kidding me? Where were you last night?" She closed her eyes. _I can't believe I'm talking to him like he can understand me. _Then her eyes opened and dropped to his shell. The box and the ribbon were gone. "No, no, no! Where did you put it?" Her hands went up to her mouth. Did Maura find it? _No_, Jane thought. Surely she would have gotten a phone call or a text message. Wouldn't she? "Oh, Bass. Tell me you somehow undid the ribbon and lost the box. Please."

The tortoise craned his neck out and blinked with disinterest.

...

She didn't know what made her angrier: the fact she'd lost a ring that cost more than her monthly salary or the fact that she'd have to explain to Maura what happened. _So if you find a really expensive ring in a box, yeah, that's for you. _Her sigh filled the empty bullpen. She feigned surprise when she found she was the only one there. At 7:30. After searching Maura's house high and low, she had finally given up and dragged her ass to work, because where else was she going to go? At 7:30. The vibration of her cell phone almost made her fall out of her chair.

_You should be up soon. When you get to work, can you stop at the morgue? I need to talk to you._

Maura must've found something during the autopsy._ At least there might be one bright spot in an otherwise shit day_, Jane mused. Figuring there was no time like the present, she shuffled her way to the elevator.

If it was possible, the morgue was even quieter than the bullpen. It was still and silent and Jane was so tired, she contemplated curling up on the dead people table and having a nap. Fortunately, she was prevented from further debate when she saw a sliver of light through the blinds of Maura's office. Her soft boots sounded like drums as she walked towards the door. With a light knock on the frame, she announced her arrival.

"Hey, got your message."

Maura's head snapped up from her paperwork. "Oh! What are you doing here?"

Jane found the energy to smile. "Hey, got your message," she repeated.

Maura frowned. "I sent that message three minutes ago."

"Those early morning jogs are really working for me." Seeing the puzzlement on the doctor's face, Jane dropped her long frame into a chair and rested her chin in the palm of her hand. "I was already at work."

"What?"

"I just... I couldn't sleep." She was thankful she wasn't the one who couldn't lie. "Did you find anything with the autopsy?"

"The autopsy? No," Maura replied, "but I did find something." She lifted a small black box out of her pocket and Jane's heart dropped. "I have to admit, I'm incredibly confused."

Jane reached forward and carefully took the box from her hand. Leaning back, she played with the velvet container on her lap. "Obviously, I messed up."

"Obviously, I have no idea what you mean." The blonde's tone was gentle and forgiving.

The detective sighed and her shoulders slumped. "I didn't want to do this here, Maura." She looked around the office. "I mean, it's the morgue! I wanted it to be somewhere nice, somewhere that's just us and not work." While Maura appeared to be understanding of the discomfort Jane was facing, it was clear there was no going back now. "I thought it would be cool to have Bass be the one to present the ring. I mean, nothing symbolizes how slow this relationship's been building better than a tortoise."

"You said 'tortoise'!"

Jane smiled broadly and felt some of the weight lift from her shoulders. "That's what he is, isn't he?"

"Well, yes," Maura answered, "but...never mind that. I might need you to start at the beginning."

"You sure? Because I've realized the beginning was four years ago, when two people met in the police cafeteria and one was mistaken for a hooker."

Maura laughed at the memory. "I remember. But perhaps you can start a bit sooner? When does the ring come into things?"

"After that day, Maura, I think I always had that ring for you, in my heart if not in my hand."

"Jane..."

"But sooner?" She fidgeted with the box, opening and closing it softly. "Do you know what yesterday was?"

Maura looked off to the side, trying to engage her hippocampus into bringing up the memory. A birthday, an anniversary, a holiday? None of these matched yesterday's date. "I'm afraid I don't, Jane."

She shook her head. "That's okay. It's probably something only I would keep in my head anyway." At last, she looked up into warm hazel eyes. "It was a year to the day we made our verbal agreement at the Robber."

A line formed between Maura's eyebrows. "You mean the marriage agreement?"

"Yep."

"I thought we agreed to a three-year deal?"

Jane shrugged. "I've been thinking a lot about what you said that day; about what I mean to you and how we would spend our lives together. And I realized I felt the same. I have for a long time, Maura." Summoning up an ounce of courage, she stood up and walked around the desk, where she knelt in front of her. Seeing the look of bewilderment cross Maura's face, Jane smiled. "I'm just gonna talk. That's all." She put the box on the desk and took Maura's hands in her own.

"You know I'm not much for words, so I hope you don't mind if I borrow someone else's." She waited for the nod of permission before taking a deep breath and beginning, "You're beautiful and brave, and you bring a compassion and joy to my life that I never want to be without." Her eyes never left the face of the woman in front of her. "I will always hold you above all others; I will always lift you up when you fall. I will always kiss away your fears and find a reason to make you laugh every day. I will be your champion until my last breath and make it my life's purpose to memorize every line and curve of your face." She smiled when a flash of remembrance sparked in Maura's eyes. These were the exact words she had said to Jane a year ago. "I love you."

Maura blinked hard. "Oh. I mean, yes." Her laughter was high and nervous. "I'm still not sure I understand. Why now?"

Jane reached for the box and said, "You mean, why not wait the other two years and see what happens?" The blonde could only nod. "Let's be honest - I couldn't do better than you, and you could definitely do better than me, so as Beyonce says..."

A tilt of the head indicated her confusion. "What does Beyonce say?"

Like a pin pricking a balloon, the tension was released and Jane laughed. "If I like it, I should put a ring on it." She went to crack open the box, but stopped. "Did you see it?"

"Yes," Maura admitted. "I was so confused by the whole thing. Poor Bass was sitting at the foot of the stairs when I woke up and he had this box on his shell. Of course, my first thought was, 'How did he tie the ribbon?'" Her laughter mingled with Jane's. "Then, I suppose, curiosity got the best of me. Is this what was going on last night?"

"Yeah. I thought I had it so planned. Then Bass decided to pull a runner. Or whatever the equivalent is for a turtle."

"Tor- I'm not correcting you any more."

Jane opened the box. "Sorry the squeal factor's gone," she apologized as she turned the box to face Maura.

"It's beautiful, Jane," she said as she tentatively reached for the ring. Uncertain, she looked at Jane. A nod of the brunette's head gave her permission, and she removed it from the velvet hold.

As she gazed at it, Jane explained, "I figured you didn't want some ol' colourless crystalline form of pure carbon."

"I will remember in the future that your verbal recall is frightening."

Jane smiled. "So I got you a platinum band. I know it's not much to look at, but I thought you could wear it without tearing your gloves or catching it on anything or... I'm rambling."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"We haven't...," Maura was unsure how to put it into words. "I mean, sex. Or kissing." She brought her hand to her forehead and felt the heat.

"If you want to date and go from there, I can do that," Jane offered. "But I gotta tell you, Maura, it feels like we've done all that already."

Maura nodded her agreement. "I feel that way, too."

"We can always wait until marriage before we sleep together. I mean, I'm almost 40, so it might be kinda fun in an old-fashioned way."

Maura slid to her knees and kissed Jane hard on the lips. Pulling back, breathless and flushed, she adamantly said, "I am _not_ waiting until our wedding night before we have sex."

"Oh, Dr. Isles!" Jane fluttered her eyelashes as her heart soared. "Is that your way of saying 'yes'?"

"Yes. Most definitely yes."

...


End file.
